Woman forced to retire at 65 wins €20,000 in court

The Labour Court said Louth county council had discriminated against her on grounds of age

LEAH FARRELL /ROLLINGNEWS

Seán McCárthaigh

Monday June 10 2019, 12.01am, The Times

A local authority has been ordered to pay €20,000 to a staff member after it compelled her to retire on her 65th birthday against her wishes.

The Labour Court ordered Louth county council to pay the sum in damages to Mary Clarke, a clerical officer, on the basis that it had discriminated against her on grounds of age.

It dismissed an appeal by the council against an original ruling by the Workplace Relations Commission in favour of Ms Clarke and increased the original award of €13,000 to €20,000.

The claimant, who had worked for the council since August 2001, said her employment had ceased as a result of her reaching her 65th birthday in June 2017. Her lawyers claimed that the decision to retire her